The unfortunate demise of Honda’s light weight rear wheel drive roadster has sparked a tremendous amount of interest from driving enthusiasts about an S2000 successor, well good news, the Japanese automaker is planning on bringing a new fun to drive vehicle to market and it could be as early as 2012. However, according to the latest rumors about the new Honda, the only thing that the future automobile will have in common with the S2000 will be the number of doors.
The original S2000 was praised as a marvel of engineering, the F20C 2.0 Liter naturally aspirated four cylinder engine made well over 100 HP/Liter with the help of V-TEC, this set a new standard for lightweight high output engines that was previously seen with Mazda’s 13B turbocharged rotary power plant. The future Honda sports car will feature a lineup of low emission engines that will be tuned more for economy than for fun. Unfortunately for those who adored the S2000 for bringing back the light weight rear wheel drive sports coupe, the future model will be driven by the front wheels.
Unlike the S2000’s rag top, the successor will feature a retractable hardtop, an added luxury over the previous model, but at the cost of a few extra pounds. In order to compensate for the extra weight, the successor to Honda’s memorable roadster will utilize a hybrid drive train, most likely the same unit that will go into the upcoming Honda CR-Z.
With talks of a new S2000 hitting showrooms and despite the Japanese automaker’s release of the Ultimate Edition signaling the end of an era, there are still new car buyers looking for an affordable, attractive and exciting rear wheel drive coupe. Now this isn’t the best environment to be selling sports cars, but the Honda S2000 is such a great car that it would be criminal not to be able to buy one.
The other day Top Speed showed you a wild WRC inspired Subaru Impreza STI. Just like the aggressively sharp wedge shaped World Rally Blue hatchback this take on the future S2000 is equally as extreme. That is mainly because they were both designed by the same guy, he goes by the name Grid, but his real name is Lars Martensson. The Swedish artist is pretty handy with his 3D imaging software and is making quite a mark with these outlandish designs.
From the emblem in the middle of the grill to the headlights that slope back up over the hood, this concept looks like a scaled down Nissan GT-R. So Honda, even if you can’t justify manufacturing a fun to drive rear wheel drive roadster anymore, at least make this car a reality, wrap this virtual sheet metal around a high revving Honda engine with VTEC. A Definitive Edition concept would do just fine.
On Monday Honda announced the 2009 will be the final year for the S2000 roadster. To commemorate the high-revver’s final year the event the company will reveal a special edition S2000 for Europe. It’s called the Ultimate Edition, and we’ll see first in it Geneva right before it hits the showrooms.
The Ultimate Edition S200 is painted in a Grand Prix White exterior color and comes with graphite colored alloy wheels. Inside gets red leather furnishings and red stitching on the accessories. Ultimate Editions will be marked out by their unique numbered plaques on the kickplates, denoting their position in the series.
It will be powered by the same 2.0-liter 9000 rpm VTEC engine that delivers 240 hp. There has been not special edition marked for the U.S. yet, but we’d be perfectly happy even if Honda would drop a few regular S2000s on our doorstep on its way out of town.
Earlier this month we got word that Honda canceled the S2000’s replacement. From that we knew the days were numbered for the aging high-revving roadster. Now Honda has officially announced that 2009 will be the last year for the S2000.
First premiering in 1999, the S2000 had a quick-shifting transmission, striking looks, and 9,000 RPM redline that made it exceptionally great. Although there inernal pieces of the car were reworked in 2004, the car remained relatively untouched for a decade. This allowed the competitors like the BMW Z4 and Nissan 350/370Z roadster to catch up, leaving the 2009 model to be reduced to only great.
We’ll miss the spunky little Japanese rocket, and Honda if you’re reading this, just because the S2000 is discontinued doesn’t mean there still isn’t a spot for it in our fleet (please).
Press release after the jump.
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Lamborghini may be in to matte finishes, but it looks like Honda is still in to keeping things a little more flashy. Last week we saw Honda’s line-up at the Tokyo Auto Salon. Now here’s one of the concepts in more detail.
This is Sports Modulo S2000 Concept. This takes the S2000 roadster and wraps it in chrome. Honda also gave the roadster a square-jaw body kit, which alters the lines to almost resemble the Japan-only mini convertible Honda made in the 90s called the Beat.
Honda today revealed details about the 2009 S2000 that will go on sale at a price of $34,795 for the S2000 and $36,795 for the lightweight S2000 CR.
The S2000 is powered by a 4-cylinder engine that delivers 237 hp. The engine is mated to a 6-speed manual transmission. The S2000 includes an electronic Drive-by-Wire (DBW) Throttle System, Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA), Maintenance Minder system, standard headrest speakers, an outside temperature gauge and an engine start button. Air conditioning and an AM/FM/CD audio system are standard equipment on the S2000, optional on the S2000 CR for weight savings.
For 2009, the S2000 is available in six colors, including, Laguna Blue Pearl, Silverstone Metallic, New Formula Red, Rio Yellow Pearl, Berlina Black and Grand Prix White. The S2000 CR is available in four colors: Rio Yellow Pearl; Grand Prix White; Berlina Black; and the CR exclusive, Apex Blue Pearl.
Press release after the jump.
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Honda will launch the next generation S2000 in 2010, with sales to begin worldwide starting 2011. The future S2000 will feature a more aggressive design, with a totally new front-end, with bigger air intakes and the high-tech optic units.
It will offer two new engines, a 2.4-liter 4-cylinder V-TEC unit delivering approximately 250Hp and a 3.5-litre V6 V-TEC unit with about 350Hp.
Honda will launch the next generation S2000 next year to celebrate the company’s 60th anniversary! The S2000 Roadster first launched in 1999 encountered a few changes in its short life time, but none of them being impressive.
The future S2000 will feature a more aggressive design, with a totally new front-end, with bigger air intakes and the high-tech optic units.
About the next generation S2000 there are two kinds of rumors. First one says the 2009 S2000 will grow in size and will be a four-seats convertible that will compete with models like Mercedes SLK and BMW Z4. Not very big changes for this to happen!
The second rumor, and the most plausible one, says the future S200 will be smaller, the same size with its biggest competitor Mazda MX-5 Miata. And we think this is the way Honda will go.
As about its engines, Honda will keep the current one: a 237 hp, 2.2-liter, 16-valve DOHC VTEC(R) 4-cylinder engine mated by a six speed manual transmission.
Picture what you’d get if
Ferrari or some other supercar manufacturer decided to enter into the sub $50,000 market – with all the delightful hardcore snap and sometimes-tiresome din such a scenario would bring in a car. That’s the S2000. It was that way from the beginning, and remains so today, despite getting significant changes for 2004 aimed at making the car’s uncompromising personality more palatable to milder drivers.
Honda first introduced the S2000 in the year 2000, drawing inspiration (...
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Honda’s refreshed S2000 is now on sale in the UK with new suspension settings to make the iconic two-seater more communicative, predictable and exhilarating to drive. The S2000’s handling and performance characteristics have been enhanced by changes to the suspension. The new set-up is identical to that fitted to its Japanese counterpart – the S2000 Type-S.
Re-tuned dampers, uprated springs and thicker anti-roll bars give the car greater stability, agile handling and more responsive steering, to help harness the S2000’s high-revving 240PS 2.0-litre i-VTEC engine.
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